As Lovers Do
by khaleesimaka
Summary: A year has passed since Soul and Maka broke up when she proposes they go back to being friends like they were before. The only problem is being friends is hard when you're still in love. College Exes AU.


A/N: Written for Reverb 2017. Be sure to check out nori-wings' art on tumblr as well as soundofez's version of this AU.

* * *

"Would you like to buy some flowers or chocolates for your special someone?"

Soul blinked down at the girl in front of him. She barely reached his shoulders, her dark hair tied in twin pigtails, and a blindingly bright smile. In either hand she held the two previously mentioned items, lifting them as if tempting him to pick one. A beautiful set of chocolates in a very pink box paired with red and white carnations beamed up at him in a dazzling mix of colors to celebrate the holiday. He should have known to avoid the quad during Valentine's season considering he never partook in the annual sweetheart sale the student clubs put on.

Usually when he walked across the quad, people ignored and bypassed him thanks to the permanent scowl etched on his face and the pissed off glare he gave them. It was part of his charm; something everyone who had known him for the last two years had associated with him no matter if he were walking alone or with someone else. He was proud of his reputation. It gave him a moment of peace when he left the confines of his dorm.

Except, for some odd reason this girl had the balls to approach him and even had the audacity to ask if he wanted to buy something. Since when did Soul Evans _buy_ anything from the clubs?

Then his gaze dropped to the badge placed over her heart, and his own gave a traitorous lurch. It was the same club _she_ was a part of; the one she had created their first year in college; the one _she_ had hounded him down in the dorms for when he refused to put his signature on her petition. The same club she would have never tried to form had they not met. Seeing the badge now, it's generic _Protect the Environment_ slogan arching over a tree, twisted his stomach and left his chest heavy.

It stirred old memories within. Opened old wounds he had tried to heal since the break up.

"I'm gonna pass," he said, pushing past her.

"A-are you sure? You don't wanna give your girlfriend something? I'm sure Maka would-"

He growled under his breath at the mention of _her_ name and roughly pulled out his phone to drown himself in the cool tunes of Miles Davis. Anything to pry the memory of _her_ out of his mind.

Close to a year had passed since him and Maka broke up, and somehow she still managed to wiggle her way into his life no matter how much he rathered she didn't. It was worse enough he still lived in the same dorm as her and knew her schedule, he didn't need to be reminded of her on his way back from class. He didn't need to be reminded how in love with her he still was even after spending so long telling himself he wasn't. He didn't need to be reminded of the past he shared with her every time he turned around.

Unfortunately for him, though, he wasn't going to get off that easily apparently.

Everyone said falling in love was easy, but they never mentioned how hard it was to fall out of it.

Then again, it was what he deserved for how badly he fucked up.

"May I inquire why you insist on coming to my room after your morning class is over?" Wes asked in way of greeting when Soul walked into his dorm room and collapsed on his bed. "Just because I'm your brother, it doesn't give you the right to just waltz in, you know. I could've been fucking someone."

"Your room is close to the main doors," Soul said, his voice muffled by the pillow.

"It wouldn't kill you to walk an extra ten steps to your dorm."

"Probably would. Have you ever seen 1000 Ways to Die? Pretty sure there's an episode about it."

"Or maybe it has something to do with a certain someone leaving her dorm at this exact time," Wes teasingly commented. "I would imagine she's heading out the door right now. If you hurry and leave, you can probably catch her and have a chat with her. Maybe talk things out so you don't hide out here anymore."

"Nice try, but she doesn't wanna talk. _I_ don't wanna talk. We broke up. We both moved on. Hakuna matata, the past is in the past, and all that other Disney bullshit," Soul waved off, flipping himself over on the bed so he was staring at the ceiling instead of smothering himself in Wes's pillow. Dying from the fumes of Calvin Klein cologne wasn't the way he planned to go.

"We? I didn't know we were speaking French."

"You know what I mean, Wes," Soul growled. "Maka," he ignored the sting in his heart from speaking her name, "and I have both moved on. Stop acting like there's something else 'cause there isn't."

The sound of a chair squeaking told Soul his brother was giving him a sly smile with her perfectly plucked brows arched and tilt of the head for added effect. The same expression his brother had given him since the _incident_ and every time the topic of his ex-girlfriend was brought up. The one that told anyone who knew Wesley Theodore Evans well enough that he knew the details of what had happened in great detail and was practically _bursting_ to meddle in his brother's love life.

"Oh, come off it, little brother. You and I both know that's a bold-faced lie 'cause if it was true, you wouldn't be in here hiding out. Would you?"

Silence fell between them save for the low hum of the air conditioner. Soul bit the inside of his cheek so his mind could focus on another pain besides the hurt searing his heart. He had managed to go a month without wallowing in his own heartbreak, and he wasn't going to break his streak no matter what.

Maka had moved on from him. He could do the same.

"I'm not hiding," Soul said, his voice low and quiet. "I'm tired. It's not my fault your room is closer to the doors than mine."

" _Soul_."

He flinched at the rough, sharp tone of his name coming from his brother's mouth. It had been a while since Wes had to reprimand him for anything, and Soul had almost forgotten what it sounded like. Compared to their parents, Wes's scolding was always ten times worse with the most effect on Soul which was more likely because out of everyone in the world, Wes was the one person he never wanted to disappoint.

A few seconds later, Wes was standing akimbo over Soul, his mouth arched down in a frown that didn't suit his pretty boy face at all and brows furrowed. Dread prickled over his chest at the sight of it, and he knew he had fucked up. He probably should have gave in and admitted to the truth when he had the chance. Whatever Was was about to say, it was definitely worse than succumbing to defeat.

While Wes was the funny, teasing brother who seized every opportunity to embarrass Soul, he was also the kind of brother who picked his words carefully and knew exactly what to say for the right effect.

Sighing, Wes closed his eyes and rubbed at his temples. "I get it, Soul. I do. You loved Maka - _still_ love her - and don't wanna see her walking to class, but this isn't healthy."

Brown, tired eyes snapped to red before he continued.

"Not seeing Maka or talking about her is gonna make it harder for you to get over her. You two broke up, and you realized it was a mistake only to have her reject you so you hurting is normal. But you gotta get over this instead of hiding out and wallowing in your own pain."

"I'm not wallowing."

"You are, and you know," Wes said, pointing a finger at him. "It's been six months, Soul. We've had a whole semester and winter break for you to distance yourself from her and get over her, but you live in the same dorm as her. Hell, she goes to the same school. You two are bound to see each other at some point. It's better if you get passed this awkward situation so you can live your life normally."

Wes fell silent for a second. His gaze pulled away from Soul's which was his tell that he knew something his brother didn't, and it urged Soul to know what. Especially if it had to do with the topic of Maka.

"Or maybe you should talk to Maka. Apologize for breaking up with her and for your outburst. Maybe there's a chance she wants to be friends or something," Wes shrugged.

Soul's interest in what his brother knew crumbled.

Whatever it was, it certainly didn't have anything to do with Maka and _talking_ things out.

"Sure," Soul snorted. "I'll go talk to her. Right after I discover another universe where Maka and I aren't broken up 'cause that's the only way she'd talk to me."

Pushing himself off the bed, Soul checked his phone for the time and determine if the coast was clear or not before standing up and stretching. His brother, for all his good intentions, was in the wrong, and he knew it. Maka didn't want to talk to him. She had cut him off from every social media platform they were on, and he was more than sure she had his name on her phone as some profanity so she knew if he ever tried to contact her. They were done, _over_ , and there was nothing he could do to change it.

"I thought you were gonna give me some brotherly advice, but now you're just speaking from your ass," Soul grumbled, picking his backpack up from where he had dropped it. "Thanks for letting me crash here."

"I wasn't _letting_ you do anything. You invited yourself into _my_ room," Wes mumbled under his breath. Louder, he said, "I'm not speaking from ass about Maka, though. I heard from a reliable source she might still have feelings for you."

Ignoring the small crack of hope in his chest, Soul shook his head and waved his brother's words away. "Whoever your source is, they're lying. I was there for the break up, the incident in August, and I know Maka doesn't want anything to do with me anymore."

He hated how soft his voice went at the end, the pain stinging across his heart at his own words, and prayed Wes would pretend along with him it hadn't happened.

The clap on his shoulder and light squeeze of his brother's hand told him otherwise.

"I really think you should listen to me just this once, little brother. Muster up the courage and _talk_ to Maka. It might go smoother than it did before."

For a split second, he almost considered to do exactly so.

Maybe it was the sincerity in Wes's words or the simple fact he was older and wiser than his little brother, but Soul almost considered to talk to Maka about the break up.

 _Almost_.

Sometimes, even with how much more knowledgeable Wes was about the world than he, Soul knew what the the right thing to do was and what wasn't in certain situations. And in this particular situation, he knew better about than Wes did.

Between him and Wes, Soul knew Maka better, and he knew if he went to talk to her, she'd only ignore him or break his heart more through her words, and his need to stay away from embarrassing situations was far greater than how much the break up was killing him inside. It was best if he continued what he was doing. He had survived this long, at least. Another year of averting Maka's path wasn't about to hurt him more.

"I'll see you later," Soul said before leaving his brother's dorm.

* * *

After a day filled with two more classes and one nap, Soul found himself in Liz's dorm room.

He tried to keep his focus on her half the bedroom to save himself from falling victim of old memories once again, but it was more difficult than he expected. Maybe it was the familiar green stuffed llama sitting on top of her bookshelf or the contrast of her need to be impeccably neat and organized compared to Liz's messy and disarray half of the room. Or maybe it was the doodles Maka drew on her white board to help motivate her, so adorable and comforting they brought a smile to his face.

Either way, Soul's gaze continuously drifted over to her side of the room. His heart tugged and coiled at the contentment it brought to him. So familiar and warm, but so far away at the same time.

Soul hated how much he missed the _before_.

"See anything you like?" Liz asked as she handed him the CD he came to retrieve.

"Not really," Soul said, pulling his gaze away from the framed photo of Maka and Liz. He remembered a time when it was him in the picture instead of Liz. "I thought you said you cleaned your room."

"I did. I put my dirty clothes in the hamper so I can wash them later. Technically that is cleaning."

"It wouldn't kill you to at least make up your bed or put your school shit where it goes," Soul muttered.

"God, you sound like my roommate." Liz's smirk irked him more than it should have. "Why should I make up my bed if I'm just gonna sleep in there later? 'Sides, you're one to talk."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You really wanna give cleanliness tips when your room looks like a tornado crashed through it?"

Liz sat down on her bed prompting for Soul to take the chair at her desk.

"That's mostly 'cause my roommate is a tornado," Soul sighed. Waving the CD, he added, "Thanks for letting me borrow this, by the way. I've been looking everywhere for it."

"And let me guess, torrents and Youtube were all bogus since they copyrighted the shit out of the music before releasing it."

"I mostly meant I couldn't find it in stores or iTunes since it was a limited release. I don't like downloading music illegally. You know that, Liz."

"Right. How could I forget Mister I'm Too Cool For You is actually afraid to do anything illegal." She scoffed. "Like ripping music from Youtube will actually get you jail time. No one cares about that kinda shit, Soul."

His only response was a shrug and slight shake of his head. Soul was fully aware of Liz's watchful eyes as he once again found his own drifting to Maka's side of the room. Seeing it now and remembering their past together, he wondered how he ever thought she wasn't anything except a daddy's girl. How he couldn't see passed the bubblegum pink bedspread to notice the leather jacket in the background and realize Maka had always been more than what she seemed to be.

If only he wasn't such an idiot back then. They'd probably still be together.

"She won't be back for another hour so you still have time to kill," Liz said, drawing Soul out of his thoughts. When his gaze met hers again, she shrugged and added, "She's starting her tutoring sessions for Stein's biology class today, and apparently the freshman are nervous as fuck for their first quiz so she wants to help ease some of their worries."

"Thanks, but I didn't care to know," he sighed in an attempt to appear aloof on the matter. Though, the knot in his stomach did loosen slightly.

"As if I'd believe that, Soul. I've known you long enough to know when you're bluffing. I'm not an idiot."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Brow quirked, Liz said, "Soul, you do realize everyone close to you knows you're still attracted to Maka, right? You act like a love sick puppy when anyone mentions her."

"I'm not a love sick puppy," he muttered under his breath.

"And I've heard from a very reliable source you hide out in Wes's room every Tuesday and Thursday morning 'cause you don't wanna see her. You're obviously avoiding her which is hilarious since you're the one who broke up with her. Guess you didn't take well to her rejecting you back in August, huh?"

"First, I'd appreciate it if you and Wes didn't talk about me when you're fucking each other," Soul said. "Second, I'm not avoiding her. I go to Wes's room 'cause it's closer to the doors than mine! It's not my fault he decided to be an RA for our dorm! And, third, let's not talk about what happened in August." He ran a tired hand through his hair. "I'd rather not be reminded of that, okay?"

"You mean you'd rather not remember how she totally ignored you when you stood over there like James Dean," she jutted her chin toward the door, "and asked if she wanted to maybe get back together."

Soul growled under his breath to play down the twisting feeling in his gut at the memory.

Liz let out an airy laugh. "Your face turned so red when you realized she wasn't going to respond. You were so embarrassed."

"I came here for a CD. Not to be embarrassed."

"Soul," Liz placed her hand over his in the short distance between them and smiled. "I love you, you know that, and you're like a brother to me. So trust me when I tell you, what you did was stupid and you probably could've gone about things another way for different results."

A small flicker of hope sparked in his heart at her words.

"Maybe if you tried to at least be _friends_ with Maka, she'd say yes this time," Liz added.

Just like that, the hope died.

Withdrawing his hand from under hers, Soul smirked and shook his head. "God, you need to stop hanging around my brother. You sound just like him."

Frustration flashed across blue as Liz scowled.

"Maybe if you listened to one of us, you wouldn't have to mope around and hide out in his room! You know none of this isn't healthy for you, Soul. You can't live out the next year trying to avoid Maka every turn you make! You're gonna make yourself sick. _Again_."

He opened his mouth to give a snide remark, but came up short because she was right.

Catching his silence, Liz continued. "I don't want to break the trust Maka has with me, so all I'm going to say is maybe instead of going the direct get back together route, you should go the friend one. You and Maka were great when you were friends. It might be a nice do-over for you two."

His gaze lifted to meet hers before falling to the floor again. The voice in his head screamed at him to ignore Liz and his brother and all their suggestions because they were wrong - wrong, wrong, _wrong_ \- while his heart spoke the opposite.

Deep down, he knew Liz was right.

Out of everyone in the dorm, she was the only one who knew Maka the best since they had been roommates since freshman year. Liz was the one Maka was closest to, the one she would confide to about her own secrets and worries, and Soul knew that. When they were dating, Maka had told Liz things he didn't think she would and was teased about it mercifully the next day by the girl. She was the only person he could trust when it came to Maka.

"If it'll change the topic, I'll think about it," Soul sighed. "Sound good?"

Her grin was almost devilish as she said, "Sounds good."

* * *

About ten minutes before Maka was meant to return, Soul said his goodbye to Liz and left the dorm room.

He was halfway to his room when he heard the familiar twinkle of Maka's laugh and his heart gave a warm lurch at the sound. Matters were made worse when his head popped up to see her waving to one of the freshman who lived in the dorm before turning to go down the same hall as him. His heart sunk when her smile disappeared upon seeing him, and the bile taste of disappointment crawled up his throat. Any hope he had felt earlier when talking to Liz vanished.

Somehow, he should have known everything the girl told him was a lie.

Liz, while she was her roommate, she didn't know Maka either.

At least, she didn't know Maka like Soul knew her. She didn't know when Maka had the right mind to ignore someone and hate them, she did it with every fiber of her being. She didn't know when Maka decided someone was utter trash, she kept them at a distance and never tried to make amends with them. Maka was the type of girl who held grudges, despised her father for years for cheating on her mama, and rarely, if ever, forgave anyone who broke her trust.

Soul assumed breaking up with someone without a warning or explanation filed into breaking their trust with them as well.

It was harder for him to breath as he felt his steps grow closer to Maka. Anxiety weighed heavily in his heart with each passing second, and his palms sweatier. The voice in his head told him to keep his attention to the floor, to only mark her shoes when she passed, but his gaze was more traitorous than he expected.

The moment they passed each other, red met green.

His heart clenched and heated at the same time, the hope from before flickering once again, but this time it didn't extinguish right away. Unlike earlier with Wes and Liz, his wishful thinking wasn't coming from a second party. It was from the actual thing, the actual person he needed confirmation from, because he knew Maka. If she hated him, she wouldn't dare give him a second glance or any if she could help it, and she had looked at him.

Maka Albarn had given him a second glance.

* * *

She hated him, _despised_ him with every fiber of her being.

All she wanted to do was gouge his pretty, bedroom eyes out and wipe the handsome smirk clear off his face for what he had done to her. Anger boiled deep in her belly like scorching water in a pot at the sight of him down the hall, and the memories of their together seared her mind like a hot iron. It was the hint of comfortable warmth beneath them that enraged her the most; the tug of her heart and tingle of her fingertips as she craved to smell him, touch him, _feel_ him again.

But she refused to give in to temptation.

Soul Evans had _hurt_ her. She trusted him, allowed him to fill the walls of her cold, dead heart for two years, and what did he do? He decided she wasn't good enough and broke up with her. His explanation had been half-hearted at best, and the way he avoided her for weeks afterwards when she wanted to talk were the worst. Out of all the men her life, he was the last on the planet who deserved her forgiveness or for her to give him a second glance. Even if there was longing in his gaze the few seconds she caught it before walking down the hallway.

Still, even with rage roaring under her skin, Maka felt her heart tighten. Felt the way _desire_ pricked her skin as she grew steadily closer to him; felt the heat of his body before he was a hair's breadth away from her. She hated how he still held her heart in his hand.

Maka tried to keep her attention toward the ground as they passed, but her eyes, ever the traitor's that they were, gave him a second glance, and her heart stuttered. She remembered the color of his better than anything else; how they watched her from across the room, how they softened when she spoke, how they drank up her body in the silence of the night. It was probably her most prominent memory of their relationship she had. Yet, she still wasn't prepared when jade green locked onto wine red.

Growling to mask the feelings burrowing back to the surface, she pulled her gaze away from him and stared back down the hall to where her dorm was. She refused to busy herself with any thoughts of Soul Evans or why he had been down _her_ hall instead of his own. Refused to turn around and call out his name, see if it still sounded, _tasted_ , the same like so long ago.

He had _hurt_ her. He didn't _deserve_ her.

He was the scum of the earth, she reminded herself as she slammed her dorm door shut. She swatted the stupid teddy bear he had given her off her bed trying to remember why she even kept it.


End file.
